A Burden's Weight
by Tumbley
Summary: The rewritten version of the manga in which Mori and Haruhi fall in love. Events will stick relatively close to those in the manga, but play out differently. Later, KyoMoriHaru love triangle? Who knows.
1. 1

A new story that I've been wanting to ease myself into since three years ago when I left. The beginning will move slow, because I need to change a few things and redefine a few characters. Bear with me. The story will move slow, and I'm not going to add any Kyoya conflict until it makes sense, so don't ask me for it if you don't see it.

Events will stay close to the manga. If you haven't read it, this series will have spoilers. I've read and own the entire series, so I'll be referencing it directly, but deviating to favor Mori. If you don't want spoilers, don't read, because I'm saying it now:

**No seriously. There are spoilers.**

POV will switch between characters as needed. Long bricks of italicized text indicate a flashback.

* * *

A Burden's Weight

Mori had always disliked having to turn his head to look at things when his body was facing a different way. He liked to look at things as they came, and face them fully. His current position, standing beside the shorter members of the host club left him in just such an uncomfortable position. With his body facing the back of the room and his head posed dramatically to the side, he felt slightly irritated. It hurt his neck to be standing so awkwardly. Not that he would ever mention that he was annoyed or uncomfortable, or adjust his stance. He was humoring Tamaki's request for a more "stylish" assembly. Humoring people was something he did often.

Mitsukuni, knowing him and his irritations tugged his sleeve to remind him that it was only a few minutes.

Just as he was about to twist his head away from the front and stretch his cramping neck, the door on the other end of the hideous floral print carpet creaked open. He smoothed the look on his face to something that suggested an impassive contentedness as opposed to disgruntled irritation.

_And for naught, _he thought, as a mousy ragamuffin of a boy stepped into the room. His demeanor did not change back however, as now the host club members were free to move about and could thus see the look on his face. He turned his whole body to face the door, a held breath escaping his comfortably silent lips.

"Welcome!" chimed the host club in unison. The boy jumped, the books he was carrying flying from his hands to the floor. Clutching at his chest with one hand and supporting himself with the other against the closed door, the boy looked frazzled.

Well. More than he already was. His hair was a mess. Surprising really, since everyone at Ouran looked particularly well groomed at any given moment. Tamaki and the twins had been talking about the boy, but Mori had not been listening. Kyoya chose that moment to explain how thick skinned the mouse must be to attend a school such as Ouran.

"In short Fujioka, you're a trailblazer!" gesticulated Tamaki, spreading his arm to a blazed trail that only he could see. "You're the top student in your class, but poorer than a church mouse! Some may call you a weed, or despise your low-class status!" As he continued to explain the boy's situation animatedly, Mori congratulated himself on his choice of the word mousy to describe him.

But was the boy really so poor? No…not poor. Just common. It was easy to forget that the majority of planet Earth wasn't as well off as the people at Ouran sometimes. He took note of the twins turning their noses up disgustedly at the raggedy sweater that the newcomer was sporting. It was ridiculously oversized, and he was practically drowning in all of the fabric. Could it be… a hand-me-down? It was more than likely.

"What is your type? Wild?" Mori snapped to attention and focused on the boy. He did NOT want to host for another man, no matter how effeminate he looked. "Boy Lolita?" And while Mitsukuni didn't look like he would mind the attention, Mori decidedly did not want him to serve a male customer either.

"N-No! I don't want any type, I was just looking for a place-

"Haru-chan, are you really a crusader? Do you have tales of rescuing princesses? I love those!" Mori belatedly realized that his small cousin had approached the mouse and was tugging on his sleeve. He knew already that this would end poorly for Mitsukuni, and walked purposefully toward the short pair.

"WHO YOU CALLIN' HARU-CHAN?" The brunette yelled, practically growling into Mitsukuni's face. When the small blonde turned away in tears, Mori was there to console him.

"Look, I was just trying to find a quiet place," the boy began to backpedal, but didn't notice the extremely expensive vase behind him. "So excuse me-

And then, too late, he realized something was amiss as his back hit the very expensive vase, and that very expensive vase hit the very hard floor. As it shattered, Mori glanced at Kyoya. He looked particularly displeased.

Mori had expected a silence to follow the deafening crash of the pot on the ground, but Hikaru and Kaoru filled it with verbal guilt.

"That vase was by Rune. It was to be the featured item in the next school auction…" one of them said, a dry look on his face.

"The bidding was going to start at eight million yen, but I don't think it'll fetch that now."

"I-I'll pay for it!" the newcomer stuttered, staring at the broken pieces of the vase in horror.

"You bet you will, but how?" Kaoru said, almost taking a pitying tone with the boy.

"You can't even afford a uniform!" said Hikaru, scoffing.

"Well, Tamaki? How should we handle this?"

Tamaki seemingly ignored Kyoya, and directed his question at the boy. "Fujioka, are you familiar with the phrase 'when in Rome, do as the Romans do?' and this – 'if you don't have the cash, pay with your carcass?' As of today, you're the host club's dogsbody!"

Fujioka visibly paled, and looked like he was going to be sick.

"Is he going to be alright?" Mitsukuni whispered, looking up at Mori confusedly.

"Mhm."

* * *

"Takashi, what do you think?" Mitsukuni asked sleepily, hitching a ride on the taller's shoulders.

"…He'll be okay."

"I meant about just him." Mitsukuni buried his face in his cousin's hair, wishing he could go back to sleep.

"…Well what do _you _think?" Mori didn't really have an opinion about Fujioka yet, and so he turned Mitsukuni's question back onto him.

"He's going to have a hard time, I think," the blonde said slowly, "but I want to make it easier for him, Takashi."

"Mm." That meant that Takashi would make it easier for him, too. At least, he would try.

Stepping into the club room, the two were met by greetings from host club and customer alike. As Mitsukuni explained their tardiness, Mori noted that Fujioka seemed to be halfheartedly apologizing to Tamaki for something, and the twins were pushing the crouching blonde on the floor. He was still scruffy; it seemed to Mori that it might be more prudent to dress Fujioka well themselves if he couldn't afford it, but he didn't say anything.

Mori felt eyes on him as he dropped Mitsukuni from his back to the floor near his guests. In his peripheral vision, he saw Tamaki and Fujioka looking at them both. It didn't bother him; he imagined that if anything needed to be explained, it would be the two of them. Fujioka's head tilted to the left and looked at Mitsukuni: no doubt wondering his true age. It was hard to tell through the glare on the scruffy boy's glasses if his puzzled look had made it to Mori or not. Despite his slight discomfort, Mori settled himself and his cousin at the table.

This table, Mori's favorite, happened to be in the corner. He liked it best because he could see the entirety of Music Room #3. He preferred it this way; he was able to keep an eye on everything, and more importantly, everyone. He considered it his duty to be the watchful hawk for the hosts and their guests. Mori's few guests were used to his taciturn manners, and didn't mind that his gaze occasionally swept the room. He served tea to his and Mitsukuni's ladies, and cake as well, then spent the next ten minutes drifting between the conversation at his own table and others. Mainly, he watched how Fujioka handled Tamaki's zealous training methods. He tuned in as the conversation between the king and the dog turned to Fujioka's family.

"He works at night."

"Guess that puts a crimp in things. He doesn't pay tuition either?" Tamaki seemed to settle as the conversation turned to a more sobering subject.

"It's not that...I mean, we're okay. He just has money problems. It's been rough, y'know? I don't want to burden him. Along with everything else, he was stuck raising me all by himself for ten years."

_I wonder what happened to his mother._

Tamaki seemed to blubber incomprehensibly, before yelling something that was quite a shock to everyone in the room;

"If you can garner 100 customer requests, I'll waive your debt to the Host Club!" He seemed pretty pleased with himself.

Fujioka, however, did not. He looked fearful: almost as if Mitsukuni had challenged him to a fight.

Sympathizing with Fujioka, Mori watched for the better part of an hour as Tamaki began to relay as many "gentlemanly" manners to the ragamuffin freshman as he could spit out. In fact, Mori almost didn't notice as Mitsukuni excused himself from the table, Usa-chan hugged to his chest.

His eyes followed his tiny cousin as he approached Fujioka.

"Haru! Wanna share some cake with me?" His cousin's smile could charm the fuzz off a peach.

Fujioka's reply seemed to be polite refusal, as Mitsukuni then offered Usa-chan to the boy. He seemed to refuse that as well, but after a few moments, smiled gently and took the stuffed rabbit into his arms. Hunny returned to the table triumphant, and beamed in Mori's direction.

_Interesting._

Soon after, Tamaki called for Haruhi.

"Fujioka! We're out of coffee!"

"So? What do you want me to do about it?" His tone was confusedly indifferent, as if expecting an order.

"Go to the market and get some, of course! Kyoya will give you money. Be back by four!" Tamaki turned back to his customers, leaving Fujioka to his own devices. Mori looked to Kyoya, who was opening his briefcase to remove the appropriate funds.

Two pairs of glasses spoke quietly to each other, and from his place at the table, he saw an expression of pure terror flash on Fujioka's face, followed by Kyoya pushing up his glasses. He could only imagine what threat the vice president had issued Fujioka.

"Does Haru-chan know where to shop?" chimed Hunny, swallowing a large forkful of cake. Mori gave him a look that said, 'Take smaller bites.'

"I'll go."

"Okay! Be back soon, Takashi!" Mitsukuni cut himself another bite of cake, half the size as the last. Mori excused himself from the table as Kyoya dismissed Fujioka.

"Does he know where to go?" Kyoya was tapping away on his laptop once again.

"I offered to give him directions; he said he could figure it out." Kyoya continued to type. "Besides. What kind of a dogsbody would he be if we have to send someone with him every time he goes out?" Kyoya seemed to be enjoying the fact that with Fujioka around, Hosts didn't have to give up appointment space to customers to run errands.

Mori was about to get more snacks from the cabinet when a grating voice piped up from the couch behind him.

"I've heard, Master Tamaki, that you're raising a kitten without a proper pedigree." She made no attempt to mask her disgust.

Kyoya looked past the tall senior, at who Mori guessed was the owner of the voice. He did not turn himself; he recognized the voice as one of Tamaki's regular customers.

Tamaki didn't seem to pay attention to her tone, and played along with the metaphor until the conversation moved on.

Kyoya gave Mori a glance that seemed to tell him "Keep your eyes on that one."

Not that he needed to tell that to Mori, of all people.

Fujioka returned a short time later with a large grocery bag. Tamaki jumped up from his place on the couch to investigate what he had come back with, and his customers followed suit.

There was a brief scuffling as the king unpacked the bag, and confusion in the air as he examined a small container full of brown powder.

"Not ground coffee. Instant." With these words, the whole room's attention seemed to be diverted to the container. When Mitsukuni got up to join the group near Tamaki, Mori followed.

"So it's true! Poor people don't have time to grind their beans!"

Mori watched with interest as the group fawned over Fujioka making the coffee, and Mitsukuni's excitement seemed to rub off on him as well, though he didn't show it. He took a few steps away from the table to observe the room.

Now that he was really looking, the grocery bag that Fujioka had brought in wasn't really that large; he was just a small person. In addition, he noticed that the girl who had spoken nastily of Fujioka earlier had remained in her seat, and was giving the besweatered freshman a very dark look.

Mitsukuni handed him a cup of the instant coffee. He tried it; it was painful at best. He quickly grabbed a forkful of fruit tart from the nearest table and as Mitsukuni took a long sip of the coffee, held it up to the blonde's mouth.

As he had expected, Hunny spit the coffee back into the cup promptly and tears welled in his eyes.

"It's so...burny!" He began to sniffle until he saw the bite of tart in front of his face, taking it from Mori and chomping happily.

When Mori turned to look for the girl on the couch, she was gone. He looked to where Kyoya was sitting, and he was gone as well.

Hm.

* * *

The next day he and Mitsukuni arrived on time, only to find that on one of the tables in the club room, seven boxes were lined up evenly across the table.

After Tamaki's explanation of the seven boxes (which happened to be boxes of instant commoner noodles), Fujioka showed everyone how to make them.

Mori was working with a box of what was supposedly yakisoba noodles, though after opening it he had no intention of eating it. After listening to Fujioka's instructions, he poured the water out into a sink. He opened the lid to see what exactly he had made, only to find that the contents of the "seasoning packet" that he had emptied onto the noodles were now on the lid.

_Bah. I did it wrong._

"The seasoning's on the lid..." he showed the coated lid to Fujioka, who looked directly at him for the first time since entering the music room for the first time. He looked pleasantly surprised.

"That's okay. Sometimes that happens. I normally just put the seasonings under the noodles to start with."

_Oh. That would've been smart._

He looked over at Mitsukuni, who was happily slurping up a cup of noodles.

"Look, Takashi! I did it!" Pieces of noodle flew from Hunny's mouth as he spoke. In a gentle motion, he closed his cousin's mouth with his hand.

"Don't talk and eat."

While he was talking to Mitsukuni, the twins and Tamaki had been fussing between themselves over Fujioka.

"I had contacts, but I lost them during the admission ceremony..." Mori watched as Tamaki took off Fujioka's glasses, the Frenchman's expression going blank.

"Hikaru! Kaoru!" Tamaki snapped his fingers, and the normally disobedient twins were at attention. They seemed to understand what Tamaki was asking.

"Kyoya! Ring up the school tailor! Mori, fetch your spare disposable contacts!"

With all due speed, Mori found his bag and retrieved an extra pair of his contacts. He actually felt a bit sorry for Fujioka, as Tamaki didn't seem to understand that prescriptions for contacts weren't universal...

But, despite his pity, things seemed to work out. Fujioka didn't complain when he put the contacts on, and they did him a huge favor. He wasn't bad-looking once he was all cleaned up, but he **was **a little on the androgynous side. His small stature wasn't helping him either.

Before they knew it, Fujioka was sitting at a table with three guests who had agreed to see him instead of their regular consignments. From a distance, all the members of the Host Club looked on with interest; it was time for the new kid to sink or swim.

Mori and Hunny wanted him to swim.

* * *

And there you have it. Ideally I'll be echoing a chapter in the manga with a chapter in this, but it won't always be the case.


	2. 2

So this is the second installment, which wraps up the first chapter in the manga. It's still a bit factual in it's telling, but it's not like love or romance pops out of the ground like a damn daisy.

* * *

"He looks like he's doing alright, doesn't he Takashi?" Hunny and Mori sat alone at a table in the corner, their customers for this half hour appointment being given to Fujioka as a test. They were blatantly watching in interest, Hunny munching his way through a large tray of cake, and Mori sipping a coffee.

"Your mother died ten years ago? What about housework and cooking?" The most talkative of the guests spoke up curiously.

"I do it. I enjoy cooking. My mother was a great cook, and she left me all kinds of recipes. It's been fun learning them, and Dad loves it when I get one right. It's all time well spent, I think." A warm smile graced the small brunette's features, and Mori could swear that the boy looked very much like a girl.

_He cooks and cleans? What does his dad do?_

He shot a glance to Kyoya, who waved him over towards the group of the other hosts. He rose, and Mitsukuni did the same.

"We have a customer!" The blonde trotted away toward the door to greet her, pink flowers bouncing behind him as he skipped.

Kyoya had moved off to the side of the club room with his clipboard, and Mori moved to meet him. His look was impassive.

"Mori, we seem to be having a problem with Miss Ayanokoji." His glasses flashed in the direction of Tamaki and his guests. "Yesterday she disappeared for a few moments while Tamaki had everyone trying the commoner coffee. I followed her, and she was rifling through Fujioka's belongings."

Mori's gaze landed on his feet. He felt guilty that he hadn't followed her.

"Now, I can't imagine that Fujioka has any belongings worth stealing, but regardless this is not good. I took a picture with this..." Kyoya removed a small black item from his pocket. "It's a camera. Seventeen megapixels, and meant to be...discreet. My security force uses them often. Just press the button on top to turn it on, and again to take a photo. Use the slide on the side to zoom. If you would be so kind, please catch Miss Ayanokoji in the act of any further transgressions by using this device."

"Don't stop her?" Kyoya handed him the camera, which was hardly the size of one of his knuckles.

"Unfortunately, I need you to let her carry out whatever she has in mind; provided that it isn't life threatening, of course. We need evidence to bar her permanently from the Host Club."

Mori had understood before Kyoya said it why they needed the evidence; he just didn't like the idea of knowingly letting Fujioka be subjected to bullying.

"Mori-senpai! Help!" Mori snapped to attention and whirled around, finding Fujioka in what could only be described as an enthusiastic head-lock gone wrong. Fujioka wailed, struggling within the crushing embrace of Tamaki.

The dark haired senior flew to Fujioka's side, hefting him easily from Tamaki's arms. Unfortunately, he was much lighter than he had expected. He had vastly overestimated the strength needed to pull the boy to safety and because of it, he was now being held over Mori's head like an Olympic trophy.

What a scene.

Mori wasn't sure what to do. He had realized the moment he picked Fujioka up that he was **not **a boy – not in the least. Should he tell someone? He looked at his tiny cousin, who was shaking his head and smiling.

Hunny already knew? Mori glanced to Kyoya, who nodded as well.

Well. At least Tamaki was still oblivious.

He placed her over his shoulder for the moment, so as to keep her away from blonde in front of him who was slightly appalled.

"You didn't have to go that far, Mori-senpai…" Tamaki whimpered.

"He asked for help, so I helped." The taller said flatly. The weight of the girl on his shoulder was minimal, but the weight of his discovery on his mind was making it hard to stand there. He wanted to put Fujioka down, but she wanted nothing to do with Tamaki.

He brought her over to his and Mitsukuni's table and unconsciously pulled out a chair for her to sit in.

"Thanks, Mori-sempai..." She flashed a small smile at him before taking a seat. Mitsukuni's smile in his direction was one of knowing.

_A girl..._

Ayanokoji's look in Fujioka's direction was more black than coal.

As the girls were leaving that evening, Mori saw Ayanokoji sneaking away towards the back of the club room where all of the hosts kept their belongings. He patted Mitsukuni's head and followed her, pulling Kyoya's miniscule camera from his pocket. He held it between two fingers, and trusted the zoom to catch what he wasn't able to from a distance. He started snapping pictures as Ayanokoji crouched and opened one of Fujioka's books, sliding something shiny inside that Mori couldn't make out. He turned and walked away before Ayanokoji was even standing.

"Kyoya." he handed the megane the small camera.

"Already? Hmm. I suppose subtlety is an art form, and only some of us are artists..." The pair turned from the door, and Mori saw Ayanokoji slink out, not bothering to say goodbye to Tamaki.

"Let's take a look at these." Kyoya removed a micro memory card from the camera and slid it into his laptop. "A blade in her textbook? My, she certainly is a foul one."

Mori inwardly cringed as he saw Fujioka lifting up her pile of textbooks and hefting her bookbag over he shoulder.

Kyoya spoke up. "It's unfortunate, but tomorrow Fujioka will tell us about the blade and we can take action."

Hunny hopped onto Mori's back as Kyoya snapped his laptop closed.

"Ready to go, Takashi?"

He nodded, and the pair left.

As Mori walked down the stairs toward the building exit, Hunny piped up.

"You're not mad at me for not telling you that Haru-chan is a girl, are you Takashi?"

Mori replied instinctively.

"No."

"I realized it when she took Usa-chan. No girl can resist Usa-chan!" He seemed pretty pleased with himself, and continued to chatter about how the twins had found out about Fujioka, too.

"She's a pretty girl, huh?" Hunny's flowers were dancing around him.

"She's being bullied." His eyes landed on his feet once again as he changed the subject.

"It's Ayanokoji, isn't it? I always knew she was a meanie," he chirped. "Are you protecting her?"

"I'm trying."

Hunny smiled.

* * *

He had made an effort this morning to stay in the first year class building for as long as he could watching Ayanokoji, but nothing had come of it. When he left, he had left Kyoya's camera with Hikaru and Kaoru, and explained the situation in full. To both their chagrin and dismay, they took the camera.

Classes seemed to drag on, and he spent the day chewing on the events of the past week. If Ayanokoji was spending so much time trying to bother Fujioka, did she know that she was a girl as well? No. That didn't seem right. If she was, she would have made it known as soon as possible to ruin her. If Fujioka was discovered as a girl, she wouldn't be able to work for the host club...

_But why not say something if we all think she's a boy? _

The final bell had rung, but Mori was deep in thought. Hunny tugged on his sleeve.

"Taka?"

"Hn?"

"Time to go check on Haru-chan, okay?"

Without another word, he hefted Hunny onto his shoulders and made off for the third music room, his pace brisk at the slowest.

Upon arrival, the twins met him at the door. Fujioka hadn't arrived yet.

"She put a needle in Haruhi's jacket. It poked her during class." They frowned rather angrily, handing the camera back to Mori. "She didn't even say anything about it! Not a word! To either of us!"

This was a little surprising to Mori. He had expected her to complain about the knife, at least. He filed away the information, respecting her all the more for it.

"Speaking of the little mouse, where is he?" Hikaru piped up.

"Yeah, really...it's not like him to be late..." Kaoru looked mildly concerned, and Hunny hopped down from Mori's shoulders.

"Takashi, maybe you should go look for Haru-chan?" he took the camera from Mori's hand, winking as he did so. "I'll talk to Kyo-chan and Tama-chan. I'm sure Tama-chan's oblivious!" The twins snickered and followed Hunny, and Mori left.

_I guess I'll just backtrack from here to her classrom,_ he thought._ I don't think she goes anywhere in between before club..._

He went down the first set of stairs towards her classroom, a large picture window on his right at the first landing. Standing there alone was Ayanokoji, looking out the window at the pond below...

And at who else but Fujioka, who was in the courtyard below staring at the pool with worry written across her face. Upon closer inspection he recognized her bag, all of her books, and even her sweater floating in the water.

Mori said nothing, but anger rose in his chest. He ran down the steps and outside, where he found Fujioka rolling up her pants and removing her shoes.

"Mori-sempai?" She looked surprised, and even a little embarrassed to see him.

"Your things..." he began to remove his shoes as well, and Haruhi tried to explain. He also noticed that one of her fingers was bandaged, and a knot formed in his stomach. _The blade in her textbook._

"You don't have to help, it's okay. I'm such an idiot, I accidentally dropped my things into the pool." He saw her glance at the window where Ayanokoji had been standing, then stepped into the pond. He did the same, and Ayanokoji was gone.

Despite her protests he removed his shoes and rolled up his pants, then also stepped in and helped her search the water.

"If you can help find my wallet, I'd be really grateful. I guess it fell out of the pocket of my bag when I dropped everything..." Her voice was tinged with frustration as they pulled her bag and books from the water and set them on the ledge.

He nodded, and they began to search the bottom of the pool. It only took a few minutes to find it, but when Mori pulled it from the water he could tell anything paper inside had been ruined, including any money. He tapped Fujioka on the shoulder and gave it to her.

"Sorry." She opened it, and what had been a look of relief turned to near tears when she saw the remnants of the ruined notes inside. _And she won't even say that it was someone else, even though her money is ruined. Does she think we won't help her?_

They stepped out of the pool and donned their shoes, then went inside. Against her wishes, Mori carried all of the wet books and her bag up to the club room with Haruhi thanking him profusely all the while.

The twins and Tamaki greeted them both when they came in, and Mori went straight to Kyoya.

"Ruined. Even his money..." Kyoya raised an eyebrow.

"Ayanokoji?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

Mori nodded, then showed Kyoya her waterlogged books and bag.

"We'll replace them and reimburse him." Kyoya looked through his ledger, making a few notes.

"Now here's something...Ayanokoji has requested Haruhi alone today."

The twins had appeared behind Kyoya, with Tamaki bringing up the rear. Haruhi had gone to check on her belongings. Hunny hopped nimbly onto Mori's back.

"You all know what to do."

* * *

"Hmm... bad luck, Haru. School bags jumping into ponds. What's next?" Ayanokoji sipped at her tea, a distinctly condescending tone slipping into her voice.

"Yeah, what?" _She requested __**me**__ for this visit. Why?_

"But you shouldn't have bothered Master Tamaki. Your attempts to keep his attention are pathetic. It would be best if you didn't misunderstand his interest..." Ayanokoji's tone was biting, and Haruhi didn't understand. Ayanokoji's eyes cut into her like a knife; they were full of hatred, and something else that Haruhi couldn't place.

"The reason you have his attention is because of your unusual background. But there are those who might not see that as harmless, and will get upset-"

"Is this jealousy?" Haruhi cut in, thinking aloud.

Ayanokoji's reaction was violent. Standing up sharply, her chair toppled behind her as she stepped back from the table, screaming, "Brute! Haruhi made a disgusting suggestion!"

She ran further from the table, making a scene all the while. "Barbarian! Someone needs to throw this commoner out-"

The girl had almost made it to Tamaki when the twins both poured glasses of water over her head. This seemed to pause her for the moment, as the shock of being doused interrupted her tirade.

"Sorry," started one of the twins, "our hands slipped!" They both gave the girl a dirty look.

Haruhi remained sitting at the table, her brain still trying to catch up to the situation.

Ayanokoji was about to start harping again when Kyoya interrupted her. From the other side of the room, she saw Mori rise from his table.

"Did you take us for blind fools who wouldn't notice your shenanigans?" The megane pulled a small stack of papers from his coat pocket. "We have all kinds of pictures of you skulking about."

"She's scary! Like an ogre lady..." The smallest senior was investigating the girl quite closely as her face contorted from rage into fear, and then mortification.

"Pitiful, really." Mori had crossed the room to collect Hunny, who had been standing near Ayanokoji. Haruhi noticed him shooting her an indecipherable look.

Tamaki took over then, looking more disappointed than angry.

"Shame, princess. You're very good-looking." The girl, now clearly shaken, tried to cut in.

"But Master Tamaki! That boy-"

"But looks alone just don't cut it. Disappear, okay? There's a good girl." He scratched his head, as if debating what to say next. His decision was swift. "You tried to smear a member of the host club. You are barred henceforth." The king took a graceful step to the side, gesturing toward the door.

With no more fight or credibility left in her, the girl ran out; face red and streaming with tears.

Tamaki turned his attention to Haruhi, whose doe eyes looked at him dumbfoundedly.

"For this fiasco, I'm raising your quota to a thousand customers!"

Haruhi must have looked like she had swallowed a ghost pepper whole. _A thousand!? It'll take me until graduation to manage that! Now I'm back to square one..._

The ladies slowly filtered out, chattering animatedly about Ayanokoji's disgrace and the cool reactions of the host club members. When they had all finally left, Tamaki began to walk back to his couch. He had almost made it before he noticed something on the floor. He picked it up.

"Oh. That must be my wallet." The leather was still wet, so Haruhi had left it on the table to dry.

Tamaki flipped open the cover, and his head tilted to the side.

"Haruhi?" the king asked quietly.

"Yes?"

"...You're a girl?"

"Yes." Her voice was deadpan.

"You never claimed otherwise."

* * *

While Tamaki flew into a rage with the knowledge of Haruhi's true gender, the other hosts discussed the events among themselves.

"I just figured it would be easier if you thought I was a guy. Can't say I fully appreciate the perceived differences between the sexes anyway. I think Dad influenced that a lot."

Tamaki might have choked on air if the twins hadn't drifted over to tease him about his obliviousness.

"Takashi?" Hunny leaned on his arm.

"Hm?"

"She's a pretty girl, isn't she?"

"...Yeah." He looked at her bandaged finger and as she wandered away from Tamaki's grabbing hands.

_She can take care of herself. That's new._


	3. 3

Sorry about the long wait for this one. Class picked up all at the same time for a long stretch. This one's a monster, ran to 8 pages single spaced in word.

Page breaks denote a shift in person, stars denote the passage of time in the same person's view.

* * *

Well, at least the pants were comfortable.

The tropical paradise that was formerly the third music room was filled with chattering girls, Haruhi included. He had watched her vehemently refuse Tamaki's offer at a blatantly effeminate costume and was serving drinks table by table. At the moment, she had a break in customers.

He busied himself by picking out fruit to serve with Mitsukuni's cakes.

"Takashi! Takashiii!" He heard Mitsukuni calling him and turned, only to have his cousin monkey his way up his side. Now surrounded by all kinds of flowers, Hunny threw a lei around his neck.

Mori's older brother instincts kicked in and he grabbed Mitsukuni, keeping him from falling off.

* * *

_Those two are acting peculiar, as usual. What's their deal, anyway?_

Haruhi was watching Mori and Hunny from the corner of her eye.

"Haruhi! Where's your tropics outfit? I want to see it!" Despite her lack of costume, Haruhi noticed that her customers were much more lively than usual.

"Sorry, ladies. I just couldn't shake the fact that it's winter outside." Haruhi smiled and put her hands up defensively, her eyes wandering again towards the odder host pair to her left.

How different they were; Hunny was a chatty smurf of a boy, and Mori might as well have been a walking statue for all the emoting he did. In a way it was funny, but Haruhi had a hard time understanding the relationship the two shared.

"Excuse me...it's almost time for your next appointment, isn't it?" A soft voice spilled over Haruhi's shoulder, and she turned to find a short-haired girl.

"Yes, I suppose it is. And your name is...?"

"Kanako Kasugazaki, second year, class B. You are a pretty one, aren't you?" The girl paused, giving Haruhi a once-over. "I think I'll make you my new favorite."

* * *

"I see...so I stole one of your customers..." Tamaki was on the warpath. He and Mitsukuni were standing behind Haruhi, and the twins had taken places at her side. Whether Tamaki liked to admit it or not, his ego had taken a blow from Kasugazaki's manic man-switch.

"That's not it at all!" Tamaki fumed, and pointed right at Haruhi's face. She leaned back to avoid being poked in the eye and bumped into Mori's chest. He silently righted her, and pushed Tamaki's offending hand to the side.

_Idiot._

"Enough of this, Haruhi! From now on, you have to dress like a girl!" the king flitted about, complaining loudly about Haruhi's gender-bending situation.

"Daddy wants to see you as you were! Like this!" Rummaging through a trunk of what could only be his personal stash, Tamaki fished out a large picture frame.

"YOU ENLARGED MY PHOTO?! HOW DARE YOU!?" Her embarrassment was evident, despite the fact that they had all seen the same picture on her school ID.

_She's shy._

One of the twins snatched the frame away from the now blubbering Tamaki, who produced a handkerchief from thin air.

"Y'know, every time I look I wonder how this..." the twins nodded at the frame, "...became _that_."

Mori looked at the picture, then to Haruhi.

_She looked like a dorky sheepdog when we met her. _He noticed that Hunny was looking at the picture with interest.

"I cut my hair cause a neighbor's kid stuck gum in it, and I lost my contacts." Her tone was dismissive. "I don't really care how I look, but being taken for a guy will help me pay off my debt."

Tamaki's disappointment was evident.

The twins chimed in, presumably with their own agenda.

"Hey Haruhi, have you ever done any social dancing? It's required for the party."

"Huh? Never... but the party isn't tied to my quota, right? I don't do well at parties, so I think I'll give it a miss..." Mori was listening, but knew that her presence at the party would be a must.

His guess was confirmed when Tamaki spoke up, his words fueled by a gentleman's revenge.

"If you're so set on being a guy, I'll be happy to show you what it takes! Social dancing is a must! If you master the waltz and perform it at the party, I'll declare your debt halved!" Tamaki's voice was laced with triumph.

Haruhi, meanwhile, looked like she had swallowed a bug.

Haruhi had been practicing with Kasugazaki for several hours at this point, and the training could be called slow at best. He watched her stumble around the floor like a drunk with two hands for feet.

_She's going to fall and hurt herself if she can't get this together soon._

Mitsukuni had asked him to practice, so he was currently following the blonde's short-stepped lead. The height difference made this significantly more difficult than usual, but Mori's disciplined feet had no trouble with the precise stepping. If kendo had given him any advantage on the dance floor, it was control.

Interestingly enough, Mori quite enjoyed dancing; the movements were calculated, but their proper execution required more finesse than most people cared to realize. The activity reminded him of kendo, and the patterns of movement kept his feet busy while his mind chewed through the scene.

He watched as Haruhi clumsily stepped on Kasugazaki's foot, the pair toppling over gracelessly. Her left-footedness was entertaining at the very least, if not slightly endearing. It was a refreshing change to be near a girl who wasn't self conscious of her mistakes.

Haruhi collected herself and Kasugazaki from the ground and headed for the table for a break. Mitsukuni saw this also, and stopped dancing.

"Cake time!" he was beaming, and Mori found himself on autopilot, cutting a piece of the nearest treat for his cousin.

He brought Mitsukuni toward one of the window seats to eat, giving Haruhi and Kasugazaki some room to breathe. The two chatted idly, and Mori's attention drifted outside the windows of the third music room, then back toward the dejected-looking Tamaki. The king had made a pity-party for himself in the corner of the room.

Only when he heard the door to the third music room click did he return to the present.

"Dance! Dance! Dance!" Mitsukuni had demolished his cake, and the two girls at the table were gone.

He was certainly an idiot.

With Mitsukuni on his back, he was running to the nurse's office at top speed. His cousin sniffled pathetically, and he urged his legs to go faster. Had he been paying attention, he wouldn't have stepped on his cousin's arm. After he had knocked him over. Because he wasn't paying attention.

_Idiot._

He skidded to a halt in front of the door to the nurse, twisting the handle as he did. The door flew open with little resistance. To his surprise Haruhi was inside, and so was Kasugazaki...

Who was now crumpled on the tile next to the door.

"He's...hurt." _Idiot. Twice over._

Before he could offer Kasugazaki a hand up from the floor she ran away, wobbling as she went. He would have chased after her if Mitsukuni wasn't still on his back.

"Mori..."

He crossed the room in three steps, plopping Mitsukuni from his back into a chair.

"What happened?" Haruhi asked, trying to find the source of Hunny's tears. Mori rolled up the sleeve on Hunny's jacket, revealing a relatively harmless scratch. Haruhi didn't judge the scratch or Mitsukuni's blubbering; she started rifling through drawers on the bedside, looking for peroxide and bandages.

Anxiously chewing on the inside of his cheek, Mori found some tools to try and fix the door that he had busted off its hinges when he had opened it.

_I didn't think I used that much force... _He suddenly felt worse about hitting Kasugazaki in the head._ I'm all over the place today._

He inspected the hinge, then lifted the door back into place and started to work.

"You say Mori stepped on you when you fell? Jeeze. Sounds grisly, all right. Although, this doesn't look so bad..." Haruhi's voice was consoling. Mitsukuni said nothing. "He's all right Mori. It's just a scratch."

He looked over his shoulder towards Mitsukuni who was still sitting in the chair, waiting for Haruhi to give him a band-aid. His relief was practically tangible, and a warm smile melted his usually statuesque face. If he had been looking at Haruhi, he would've noticed her expression fade from relief to curiosity.

"Haru! Did you meet Toru?"

"Toru?"

"Second year, class C...Toru Suzushima, Kanako's fiancé!"

Mori fitted the last screw into the hinge.

"Fiancé!?" Haruhi seemed genuinely surprised.

"Sure! They've been engaged since they were little kids!" Hunny bounced out of his seat, bandage now applied and flowers bouncing once again.

Haruhi raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything else. Mori couldn't decipher the look she was giving him.

He stole a glance at the bandage on his cousin's arm.

_Thanks, Fujioka._

The doors opened, and the sounds of the girls cooing their approval washed over the host club like the gentle waves of low tide. They trickled in slowly, each a vibrant blossom in a different hue.

Mori watched from the stairs as the more talkative members of the club gave their introductions. The girls seemed particularly excited, pointing to each host and squealing delight at their formal wear.

Time passed as each host danced the next few hours away, Mori saying little and Haruhi doing her best not to trip over the customers who had asked her to dance. The twins were alternating between the dance floor and card tables, using their separation to their advantage.

As Mori was waltzing by with one of his more graceful designators, he overheard Kaoru giving his dance partner quite a shtick.

"It's so hard to be away from Hikaru! It seems the only hands I'm used to holding are his..." He sounded particularly troubled, and the girl was blubbering consolation as he spun her around the dance floor.

As the party died down a little, the hosts began to collect in the middle of the room for a break from dancing.

"Haruhi! You seem pretty tense." Tamaki tapped her on the shoulder. The twins had garbed her in a suit they had long grown out of. She was looking more like a host with each meeting, it seemed.

"I'm just not really used to events like this." She let out a heavy sigh, and Mori noted that she did seem out of her element; her composure wasn't broken, but she certainly didn't look comfortable. "Normally Christmas for me usually amounts to Dad bringing home a fruitcake from work..."

"So you're alone at Christmas, Haru? How do you spend it?" Mitsukuni piped up, his face mildly distraught.

"Well last year I watched the Kato Family's Dining Room Christmas Special on TV..." The twins and Tamaki squabbled on, and Mitsukuni turned momentarily from the conversation.

"Takashi, she's alone on Christmas?"

"Seems that way." The quiet between them was one of understanding. Mitsukuni sniffled a bit, and Mori patted his head consolingly. "She seems okay with it." A feeling of empathy crept into Mori's chest.

"Well so long as you're here, you might as well enjoy the food." in his own way, Kyoya was trying to settle her nerves. Mori knew he wasn't the bad guy he made himself out to be.

"Is...is there giant tuna?" Haruhi looked up at them all, her doe eyes inquiring. She looked oddly hopeful over tuna, of all things...

Tamaki, obviously enraptured, sympathized immediately.

"I WANT GIANT TUNA HERE, STAT!"

The twins chimed in as Haruhi blushed violently.

"How modest!"

"How unassuming!"

Mori felt obligated to help. He attempted to assuage her embarrassment by going to grab a tray of sushi to see if there was anything else she might like. From behind him, he heard Mitsukuni offer her a few plastic tupperware containers.

He smiled to himself, and to his right Kyoya was ordering giant tuna. After grabbing the sushi he turned and to his dismay, Haruhi had slipped away from the stranglehold of the twins and Tamaki, her now tuna-pink face retreating into the crowd of girls. _She's so embarrassed..._

Minutes passed, and the evening continued in a parade of dancing and airy chatter. Mori had just finished a dance with one of his regulars when he saw his cousin waving from across the room.

Mitsukuni bounced his way over, looking much more dapper than he had only moments ago.

"It's almost time, Takashi! Are you ready?"

"Hm?"

"To go get Haru-chan!" He had heard nothing of the sort, but followed his cousin across the dance floor dutifully. From across the space, he could see her helping Kanako up from the floor. Haruhi held out a lean hand to Kanako, ushering her from the ground for a dance.

Mori didn't give her the chance to respond. Before Kanako could take the offer, Mori closed the gap between them. He took the brunette's delicate hand in his own and in one smooth motion, grabbed her hip and hefted her effortlessly onto his shoulder.

"Found you, Haru-chan!" Mitsukuni chimed, as they crossed the room swiftly and made for the prep room.

"Hey, stop! Put me down!" despite her protests, he kept his arm like a stone around her, making sure that her wiggling didn't send her falling to the ground.

"Here he comes!" They entered the prep room to find Kyoya and the twins waiting for them, one of which had an outfit in hand. Mori gently removed Haruhi from his shoulder and placed her in front of them. His part in this was nearly over.

"Here, change into these! And make it snappy!" One of the twins shoved a bundle of fabric into Haruhi's hands and pushed her unceremoniously toward a curtained area on the side of the room. They waited patiently as she changed, hearing her fuss with the garment from the other side of the curtain. Kyoya talked her through the plan as she did.

"The party will reach its climax in about twenty minutes, Haruhi. That's your time limit. Are you ready?"

Haruhi stepped out from behind the curtains, donning a simple, sage green dress. She shook her head confusedly in response to Kyoya, looking from him to the twins, and then to Mori. Kyoya picked up on her confusion first, and explained while the twins began to fuss over her makeup and a wig.

"We've already called Mr. Suzushima over to room 2-C."

Hunny chimed in as well.

"Find out how he really feels!"

The twins finished their task and stepped back, revealing a very different looking Haruhi; the ragamuffin of a girl had been replaced with a delicate, glowing flower. The wig the twins had given her left chestnut locks framing her face and spilling over her shoulders. Mori had to wonder that if she had always looked at this, how were men not constantly nipping at her heels?

He caught himself smiling and smoothed his expression as Tamaki burst in through the door.

"What's going on in here!? We have guests to entert-" he stopped mid sentence, his eyes taking in the sight of Haruhi without his brain being able to register the scene in front of him.

"Whatcha think, Milord?" The twins were beaming, obviously satisfied with their work. The king's face had taken on a heavy blush, his mouth now covered by one of his hands. Hunny unabashedly hopped up to Haruhi, checking her makeup.

"So cute!" The blonde grabbed her hand and led her toward the door, and Mori took his cue to follow.

They had given her light heels to wear, but despite only the inch or so lift that they were giving Haruhi, she wobbled out of the room and into the hallway. Mori was close behind, making sure that she didn't wobble her way to a fall.

When they got to 2-C, Mori and Hunny passed the door, aiming to stay in the adjacent classroom for the duration of their conversation. It was important that Kanako didn't see them, but if something went wrong they needed to be nearby.

Hunny gave Haruhi a reassuring push toward the door, and they heard it creak behind them as she stepped inside. Making their way into the adjacent room, Mori listened as Mitsukuni quietly babbled.

The windows in both classrooms were open, and Mori settled himself in the corner of the classroom closest to 2-C. The wind carried the smell of cherry blossoms, and the sound of two calm voices through the pane.

"...I know that it's selfish, but I'm hoping she can forgive me."

Haruhi's flat tone cut through the quiet like a knife. Her bluntness was still new to him, and he chuckled to himself as she began to explain.

"That's quite selfish, actually. If you already know how you feel, why wait? How is she supposed to know how you feel if you don't tell her?" She paused for a moment, and Mori strained to hear. "When one wants to change, that's when one begins to change. It may be that-"

Suzushima's voice cut her off.

"Kanako?" Another feminine voice mumbled something weakly that Mori couldn't distinguish, and he made for the door of the classroom. He could hear the clicking of heels against the polished tile in the hall, and the sound of Suzushima tearing off after her.

He slid through the door, Mitsukuni on his heels. He had only moments to react as Haruhi attempted to follow the pair, running out the door haphazardly; and tripping as she did.

Mori's hands reacted before his brain had even given them a command. He reached out and gingerly and grabbed her arm, tugging her safely into his chest in one fluid motion. He felt the soft thump of her head against his sternum and knew he'd caught her in time.

"Haru-chan! Are you hurt?" Mori held her at arms length, trying not to invade her personal space. She looked more worried than hurt.

"What about Kanako? It looks like we just made things worse!" She seemed defeated as Hunny pulled them both toward the window.

"Just watch, Haru-chan." She looked out the window and noticed that the girls that had been in the ballroom were now crowded into the window terraces overlooking the courtyard.

Without warning, Kanako burst from one of the double doors, her sashes and ribbons flying behind her. Suzushima was right at her heels, reaching for hand. His face was painted with regret and panic.

They watched as he leapt once more across the bricks and captured Kanako's hand in his own. Without warning, they were standing in a pool of rosy pink light.

Then another.

And another.

They stood frozen, luminescent under all of the pastels of spring; the girls in the windows were gasping confusedly.

Tamaki's voice boomed out into the courtyard, and a hush fell over the crowds of ladies. Kanako and Suzushima gazed up at the blonde confusedly, hands still interlocked.

"Merry Christmas! And blessings on two stubborn mules!" The confusion of the girls changed quickly to excited approval, and the hushed whispers became echoed applause that rang through the courtyard. Kanako and Suzushima were smiling and laughing, and everything seemed to have worked out.

"Thanks for catching me, Mori-sempai." Fujioka shot him a look of gratitude, and she seemed to be happy with the spectacle in the courtyard below. "I should probably go change out of these clothes, huh?" She took her shoes off and walked off toward the main salon, her dress flowing gently behind her; but something wasn't quite right. Mori watched closely and saw her limping.

He and Mitsukuni watched as she tugged her wig off, her short locks spilling out messily from underneath it. The pair stood and watched the courtyard for a moment more as Suzushima and Kanako took the opportunity to explain themselves to each other. The girls had moved away from the windows and were making their way back into the ballroom, and the pair had been given a brief moment of solitude. They were gesticulating wildly, each trying to explain in the most frank terms what had led to now.

Mori felt a bit of pride for having been part of their reconnection.

"Ready?" Mitsukuni tugged on his sleeve, and they were off toward the main salon.

* * *

She had made her way downstairs, once again donning the twin's old suit and a spiffy hairstyle. She was hobbling a bit, and as far as she could guess she had twisted her ankle a bit when she tripped upstairs. She was trying to step slowly and be as subtle as possible. There was dancing still to be done if she wanted to cut her debt.

It was no task finding the other hosts, as they were all clustered together with Tamaki making himself more than obvious. _That's weird. The only person missing is-_

For what seemed to be the tenth time that night, Haruhi was hefted into the air. _Oh. There he is._ She was carried gently over to a large chair where Mori set her down, giving her a stern look as he did so.

"Stay there."

Haruhi was at a loss. She wasn't sure what she had done wrong. She watched Mori step away and have a brief conversation with Kyoya. His glasses glinted in her direction once before he nodded and Mori stepped back towards her.

"Here." He had produced an ice pack seemingly from thin air, and held it to her ankle. "Keep it there." Haruhi put a hand on it, frustrated. Mori knew, which meant Kyoya knew, which meant that she wouldn't be able to dance the chunk of debt away that Kyoya had promised her.

She looked over at the food tables, and noticed that they were sadly lacking in content.

Phooey.

She looked out into the crowd of girls and spotted Kanako and Suzushima twirling around the dance floor. They were both beaming, and her heart lightened a bit. Haruhi relaxed, and a smile fell naturally onto her face.

_I guess it really isn't so bad._

She watched for a few moments longer before the voices of the twins boomed through the room in unison;

"And now, the main event! Tonight's big winner, Miss Miyako, was to receive a blessed kiss from the King!" She saw Tamaki begin to move towards the center of the dance floor, but the twins continued.

"However...that will now be awarded by Haruhi Fujioka!" A spotlight flipped on above Haruhi, and her jaw uncontrollably dropped. The screams from the girls in front of her were deafening.

"HEY!" Tamaki shouted at the twins, his face expecting an answer.

"Kyoya said a twist ending would set off the evening just right, so...ta-dahh!" The twins were grinning from ear to ear, and Haruhi didn't doubt that this was entirely their idea.

She was hesitant to get up from her chair, but Kyoya leaned down and gave her the motivation she needed.

"If you do this in lieu of a dance, I'll cut your debt by a third." Haruhi couldn't help but feel like Kyoya was some sort of demon...

_But a third of my debt?_

Haruhi tossed the ice pack to the side and walked slowly toward the girl.

"Haru's first kiss, perhaps?" Hunny didn't seem to care either way, but his musing out loud made Tamaki's ears twitch.

_On the mouth is out, but on the cheek, sure..._

She was leaning in to give the girl her kiss, and she heard a wild yell from behind her.

"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!" She felt a pressure on her back that turned into a forceful shove, and in turn found her mouth pressed quite firmly to Miss Miyako's.

The squeals were overpowering, and Haruhi felt a million eyes turn from her to Tamaki.

* * *

Was he the only one that was irritated by Tamaki? Kyoya and the twins were yukking it up, like ruining Fujioka's first kiss was some kind of joke. He was frustrated for her on her behalf.

"Congratulations, Miss Miyako!"

"Didya see? Didn't Master Tamaki try to interfere?"

"He always wants to do the kissing! He's a kiss-a-holic!"

The death glare that Haruhi was shooting Tamaki made him feel a little better.

"Haruhi, I just didn't want your first kiss to be-" he was practically sweating bullets trying to defend himself, and Haruhi disgustedly turned away, cutting him off.

"But it was, thanks to you. Not that I care. I just didn't realize you were so needy..."

"But Haru-"

"My respect for you dwindles. Is this some new way to try and harass me?" She walked back towards himself and the other host club members, leaving Tamaki to babble on the dance floor.

"Hey Haru, want some cake?" Mitsukuni had bounced up next to him as Haruhi approached.

She gave them both an exasperated look.

"Yes, please."

Mori ushered them both toward a table, shooting Tamaki a look that was somewhere between disbelief and derision.

_He's lucky he didn't step on her foot._


	4. 4

**Hey guys. This is the fourth installment of my MoriHaru (which I would hope you know considering you clicked on it.) Fluff is minimal in this one, but some tweaks have been made. This installment also marks the completion of the first book in the manga, with the exception of the bonus episode about Bunbun. I'm going to add that later when I feel like replacing an episode I don't like as much or that isn't useful later in the series.**

**Also after reading my previous chapters again, I realize I've been relying heavily on people's knowledge of the book settings to transition from scene to scene. I'm trying to be more descriptive, so hopefully my writing will get better as we continue through.**

**In usual form, page breaks denote a shift from Haruhi to Mori and in this case (because my stars got taken out last time), +++ will denote the passage of time without a switch in person.**

*****Okay apparently the horizontal line thing just DOESNT anymore, so editing again for coherency. God damnit.**

* * *

_ Hmm. Seems like everyone's blubbering tonight. Where do they get all the-_

Haruhi had been glancing behind her, once again finding herself mystified by the relationship between Mori and Hunny. In her carelessness, she had bumped into Kaoru. She watched as a small bottle of transparent liquid tumbled out of his sleeve; a small red eye decorated the front.

_A-ha._

"Hey, that's cheat-"

"Shh!" Hikaru seemed to appear out of nowhere, and the twins hushed her into silence by stuffing an expensive tea snack into her hands.

One of the twin's customers trotted over to them, admiring Haruhi.

"Haruhi, do you like sweets?"

She thought for a moment before responding quietly, "No, I generally don't care for them. But it will make a nice offering for my mother."

Mori looked on in amusement as Tamaki and the other customers began to swarm Haruhi with flailing hands and as many tea snacks as could be found. He liked that the attention seemed to roll right off her back. Drowning in compliments seemed to be one of the hallmark characteristics of female Ouran students, and he was happy that she hadn't succumbed to narcissism.

In the doorway someone twitched, and Mori turned his attention to the entrance. A female student was silhouetted, half hidden by the frame of the door. She was peeking in nervously, her eyes darting from face to face. Who was she looking for?

One of the twins seemed to notice her then, and hailed her from his position in the center of the room.

"Oh, hello! Come on in, don't be shy..."

He watched his cousin push through the twins to get a better look.

"Pretty!" His exclamation had made it past his mental filter. She entered, long brown hair and a gaudy pink bow decorating her head. She wore an Ouran uniform, but Mori couldn't recall ever having seen the girl before.

Tamaki chimed in then. "Gentlemen! Decorum, please!" Tamaki offered his hand forward to the girl and began his spiel, "Welcome, Princess, to the Ouran Host-"

"DON'T TOUCH ME, YOU PHONY!" The forceful screech of her voice would have been enough to knock Tamaki to his feet, even if her vicious surprise of a slap had not.

Mori noted casually that the slap while great in force, had no technique behind it. He eased himself at the thought. _Nothing like a misguided queen to keep this place lively._

The chatter in the room had ceased, the hushed crowd and remaining club members looking on; some in interest, and some in complete awe.

"How did YOU get to be the KING of this club!?" The girl gesticulated wildly toward the bewildered Tamaki, who seemed more affected her 'phony' barb than by the rosy outline of a hand that now decorated his cheek. She might as well have stenciled her hand on his face with a red crayon.

"The King does not spread his love around like cheap margarine!" She pointed down at the blonde fluff that was Tamaki's head; he seemed too shocked by the girl to pick himself up from the brilliantly polished tile.

Her tirade continued as Mori tracked down his cousin and Haruhi. He hoped she wouldn't snap at Mitsukuni, as his cousin's attempts to assuage situations like this had the general trend of making them much worse.

Both Mitsukuni and Haruhi had stepped forward to get a better look, and Mori followed suit. He quietly moved to stand behind them both.

"You're just a mushy oaf! An cut-rate Romeo! An airhead pretty boy!" Tamaki balked, his expression twisting from dazed surprise to indescribable terror. "YOU'RE A LOUSY LOVER!"

He could have swore he heard Haruhi let out a nearly imperceptible snort, but from his position behind her the expression on her face was a mystery. Even if she wasn't, he was slightly amused by the girl's ardor.

Tamaki deflated, and the girl turned her attention elsewhere. Tears bubbled in her eyes as suddenly as her rage had manifested, leaving her looking doe-eyed and hardly the screaming banshee she had been moments ago. The king lay in a crumpled heap on the floor, being poked and prodded by both bemused twins as he sobbed melodramatically to himself.

With Tamaki out of the way, the girl seemed to hone in on Kyoya. The members of the host club watched in confused silence as the now beaming girl bounded up to the shadow king and wrapped her arms quite indelicately around his torso, cuddling into his kimono.

"Kyoya! How I've ached to see you; my one, my only prince!"

_Huh._

_FOR SOME REASON I CANT PUT +++ FOR A TIME PASSAGE SO THIS IS A TIME PASSAGE THIS IS STILL MORI /PTERODACTYL NOISE IM VERY ANGRY_

Once they had cleared the club room of it's regular guests, changed back into their uniforms and gotten Tamaki to quit sobbing, the banshee began to explain herself.

"My name is Renge Hoshakuji. I'm transferring into 1-A tomorrow. I've been in France since I was ten..."

She continued to talk, and the club lost interest as they inspected the pouting king from afar.

"He's all mad 'cause_ mom_ kept a little secret from_ dad..._" The twins seemed to find the whole situation to be completely out of their humorous reach.

"Not that I care, but how long do you intend to keep referring to us as mom and dad?" Kyoya asked, his disapproval more evident in his tone than in his words.

Their ears all seemed to twitch and refocus on Renge when her monologue drifted from her past into her thoughts about Kyoya.

"Oh, it was love at first sight. Watching him commune with the plants in the yard, which get so little attention..."

Mori would have been impressed if any of the other club members could swing a look that wasn't utter disbelief.

"...then tending and comforting that injured kitten..."

"Really? That's hard to picture." Apparently the twins couldn't contain themselves any longer. Mitsukuni looked pleasantly surprised by her story telling. Mori couldn't help but sigh. His cousin was eating up the girl's words like cake.

"Look Renge, are you sure you mean Kyoya?" Haruhi chimed in, earnest as ever. Kyoya seemed put out that she had said anything at all. Even the twins tried to rein her in.

"Haruhi, don't be so unfeeling! He's standing right there!" They both were exasperated by her interjection.

"I MEAN HIM EXACTLY!" Renge shouted. Her eyes burned with what Mori could only assume to be misdirected passion. "He's kind to all and sundry, asking for nothing in return! A lonely soul who loves solitude!" The longer she talked, the more unbelievable her description of the shadow king became, until;

"Priceless moments captured in a love simulation game, featuring Ichigo Miyabi from "Uki-Doki Memorial!" And you," she pointed at Kyoya's very straight nose, "look just like him!"

Another stunned silence settled over the host club members, and Mori mused to himself that Renge's seemingly unlimited capacity for screaming was incredibly efficient in quieting other people.

"FAN GIRL!?" Tamaki and the twins were not prepared for the news, and their rapid backstepping away from the group left Haruhi, Mitsukuni and himself in front of Renge with vaguely disapproving expressions.

_I understand being a fan of something, but to project it on another person and throw yourself at them..._

"This is a little...ridiculous." Haruhi said under her breath. Mori could tell her patience was wearing thin.

"Now it makes sense. She's fitting me to a game character and figures that makes me her fiancee." Kyoya was as nonchalant as ever, as if the girl had claimed him as a long lost cousin and not a fiance.

Tamaki perked up, Renge's strange exclamation finally turning some gears in his head.

"Then...you're not her real fiance?" Even Tamaki seemed exasperated.

"Not to my knowledge...and I'm pretty sure I'd know." Kyoya rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"Then just say so, you fool!" The eyes of Tamaki, both twins and Haruhi were all burning holes into Kyoya's skull. Haruhi seemed to be giving up on the day, and he watched her indelicately slump herself into a very delicate chair. Her bullshit quota had apparently been filled, and there was still an hour and a half left of club.

Renge was pacing anxiously around in a circle, asking Mitsukuni all kinds of questions.

"I checked, and it seems Kyoya manages this club. Is that true?"

"That's right, he's in charge!" Mitsukuni remained the only cheerful person in the room.

"OMIGOD! That's perfect! I've dreamed of being a shop supervisor!" She was definitely a hand-talker. Any time her lips moved, her arms followed them wildly. She hardly needed the emphasis.

"So what? We're a host club..."

"...not a bakery." The twins were trying to bring the girl back down to earth, but Renge wasn't having it.

"I've decided! As well as training to be a good wife, I will serve as manager of this host club!"

"Yep. She's gone."

"She's off in her own world, Milord..." The twins pointedly looked at the king, who took his cue.

"Um...Kyoya?" Tamaki started to plead, but the shadow king interrupted him.

"She's the daughter of one of my family's key clients. Please treat her with respect. Or **else**." Kyoya didn't even bother to look up from his notes as he said it, and Tamaki knew there would be no arguing.

"Well, if you put it that way..." Tamaki nodded at the other host club members, and Mori knew what was about to happen next. He snatched Mitsukuni and headed for the door.

"Haruhi!" Tamaki patted her shoulder consolingly, but wouldn't look her in the eye. The twins helped her out of her chair. "...THIS ONE'S ALL YOURS. DADDY CAN'T HELP YOU NOW!"

The twins shouted as they bolted for the door,"YOU'RE ON YOUR OWN!"

From the exit, Mori saw her look desperately at Kyoya, who pitilessly glared at her. "Failure will increase your current debt considerably." His pace was brisk, and Mori held the door for him as they left a frustrated Haruhi alone in a room with a complete stranger.

* * *

Haruhi wasn't much for fighting bad circumstances, so she decided that she would at least entertain the girl in an environment that she could control.

"You like Kyoya, right?"

"Like!? I love Kyoya! What a beautiful soul! A kind-hearted gentleman..." Haruhi wasn't about to interrupt her, so she grabbed her hand and led her toward the kitchen she had discovered a few weeks ago in the back area of the music room. She knew Kyoya kept it stocked with everything needed to bake Hunny several emergency cakes, and she set Renge to work. Cookies couldn't be that hard for Renge, right?

_This was a huge mistake._

Haruhi lamented her own poor choice of activity, as she had to micromanage everything that Renge attempted in the kitchen. She had completely forgotten that rich people don't cook for themselves, and though Renge had lived in France, she proved to be no exception. She had ruined the chocolate first by burning it, then by putting it in water. Then, on top of all that, the girl had no common sense; she had burned her hands on a hot cookie sheet by trying to take it out of the oven without a towel, when the cookies on the sheet were CLEARLY already burnt and ruined.

_Gah. Well, at least mine turned out alright. _

Their attempt to exit the kitchen with their respective batches of cookies led them straight into the rest of the host club, who Haruhi realized had not left; just hidden until they knew that Renge would be out of their hair for the rest of club time. She was irritated by their childish behavior. She could hear Tamaki in one of his dream theaters from the other side of the kitchen door.

"Fools! Don't you see what's happening? A room filled with the scent of baking snacks made by...two...uh...female best buddies! It's the latest phase of our big project to get Haruhi to awaken her femininity! In such a congenial, and uniquely feminine atmosphere, Haruhi's conscience will realize..."

"ZIP IT, FAKER!" Renge spat as she stepped out of the door, rendering Tamaki once again mute in a corner of the room. "Kyoya, Haruhi taught me how to make a common folk's cookie. I must confess I've never baked before, so I was a little nervous..." her high pitched giggle seemed to ring in the air. Haruhi was convinced that unreasonably melodious laughter was one of the mysteries of French people.

"I see. They have a rather... deep color." Kyoya put on his best smile, but Haruhi knew that anyone who saw one of Renge's nightmare biscuits would be apprehensive to try it. Her suspicions were confirmed as Renge passed out more of her cookies to the rest of the host club, and Kyoya stealthily tossed his into the nearest garbage can while she was looking the other way.

"Yes, they're a tad overdone." She turned back to Kyoya, who wiped imaginary crumbs away from his mouth. "But I know that you'll say,_ if you made it, then it's a feast fit for a king!_"

Kyoya said nothing.

The responses from the ensemble of hosts who also received cookies were not so kind as the one that Renge had imagined, and they distracted her from Kyoya's complete lack of niceties.

"What is this—a rock?" Both twins looked disgusted at best, and Mori wouldn't even put the cookie near his face.

"Not very yummy..." Mitsukuni looked like he might cry, and Renge's violent reaction to the comments released the dam his tears might've been building behind. He hid behind Mori, and Haruhi took the opportunity to try her own cookies.

_These aren't so bad. It's been a while since I baked anything..._

She was completely oblivious as Hikaru invaded her personal space, taking a large bite from the cookie hanging out of her mouth. He pulled away, talking through a mouthful of ginger snap as Kaoru approached on her right.

"Yum. Bake us a cake next time, will ya?" Hikaru wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

"Hold still Haruhi, you have a bit of cream..." Kaoru licked her face, removing a small drop of cream from her cheek.

Tamaki did not react well.

"WHAT THE HELL, YOU TWO?" The twins both gave him a sly wink, and Haruhi seemed unmoved.

Kyoya chimed in. "Well, her **male** buddies are sure piling up fast, Dad..."

"Kaoru, I can wipe it off myself. But...there is this bit here, Hikaru..."

Tamaki blew his gasket, snatching Haruhi away from both grinning twins.

"HEY HEY HEY! BAD REACTION! VERY BAD! YOU SHOULD'VE CHASTISED 'EM FOR THEIR IMPERTINENCE!"

Haruhi was completely unfazed by Tamaki's alarmed screaming.

_So obnoxious..._

Is this sexual harassment, you kiss-a-holic?" Her delivery was completely flat. Completely in earnest.

"Wha-? Sexual harass... I JUST TOUCHED YOU! THEY LICKED YOU LIKE DOGS!" Tamaki was visibly wounded by the accusation, but not bleeding enough to stop his tirade.

Meanwhile, nobody except Mitsukuni seemed to notice that Renge had become pensive, and was no longer fawning over Kyoya.

"Renge, would you like some milk?" Mitsukuni offered her a small mug.

In return, Renge pinched his cheek. Hard. His high pitched wail brought the attention of the other club members back to Renge. Haruhi took a glance around, and noticed a very subtle dirty look from Mori headed in the girl's direction.

"Tepid." The twins' dirty look wasn't as veiled as Mori's. "All of these characters are tepid! There's no depth! No shading! No angst! Women love to swoon over handsome, tragic men! Without that, men are just silly and stupid and boring, AND THAT WILL NOT DO FOR KYOYA'S SHOP!"

_Here we go again. What in the world is this girl thinking? She's like Tamaki's female clone!_

Haruhi watched as each member of the club was assigned a "new" identity (which hardly seemed new; Mori and herself were assigned the personalities they already had), and wondered idly how much longer these games of Renge's would last.

"And lastly, Kyoya is fine! No changes needed at all!"

"Jeeze, major misreading there..." The twins were running out of patience too; Haruhi checked the clock and was silently reassured that it was almost time to go home.

The irritated club members collected around Kyoya as Renge drifted away to cater to Tamaki's new-found passion for acting.

"Kyoya...do something." The twins could hardly contain their irritation.

"Such as? Haruhi is in charge of her. And look..." They all shifted annoyed eyes over to Renge and the King, who were deeply involved in a conversation about Tamaki's "abject lonliness" pose. "Our president is quite into it. Let's just see how it goes, shall we? It could be interesting."

* * *

_Interesting is not the word I would have chosen. _

Mori watched disinterestedly as Mitsukuni attempted to be mean, and Haruhi attempted to look scared.

Neither of them were successful. After a few lines, Mitsukuni broke down, sobbing dramatically into Haruhi's arms. Haruhi returned to a state of aloofness. He was glad someone else was as unamused by the film crew and all of the shenanigans as he was.

Not that he didn't enjoy spending time with the host club; but acting on the whims of a crazed fan girl was not a way in which he wanted to spend his afternoon.

"I'm so sorry Haru!" Mitsukuni's sobbing continued, and Renge shouted for the crew to cut.

"You MUST stick to the script! And don't just recite the lines—put some feeling into it!" She turned toward the rest of her crew and actors. "OKAY EVERYONE, TAKE FIVE—AND MAKE THAT RAIN MORE MELANCHOLY!"

Her lecture was short but loud, which they had come to realize was Renge's trademark. The french fan girl wandered away towards her film crew, and left the actors to mill around.

Mori was impressed by how well Haruhi was taking Renge and her antics.

"Where'd she even get this flim crew!?" Ah. He was impressed by how well Haruhi was **tolerating** Renge and her antics, then. He supposed Kyoya had something to do with it, and the shadow king chose that time to chime in.

"Straight from Hollywood, looks like..." Mori didn't doubt that somehow, Kyoya knew directors and producers in Hollywood. Kyoya knew everyone. He tipped his head down to check on Mitsukuni, and thought he saw something in Haruhi's face that was reminiscent of the time she asked for ootoro at the Christmas party.

"We somehow went from character revision to a small movie project? What gives?" Hikaru's pointed stare at Kyoya was met with nothing but a glint of his glasses.

Kaoru chimed in, too."What's the deal with us playing basketball anyway? And getting drenched by fake rain?"

"You guys seemed to be taking it seriously..." Haruhi deadpanned, making it abundantly clear that she thought the twins were enjoying their roles.

Mori was toweling the water out of Mitsukuni's hair as Kaoru tried to defend himself. "Yeah? Check out the script!" Kaoru tossed it at her chest, and she caught it without a hint of grace. It was like watching a drunk crocodile try to grab an antelope with its arms instead of its teeth.

She read for a few moments, and Mitsukuni led him to Haruhi's side.

"How 'bout that? At first it seems like Hikaru is the lead, but in fact the more mature Kaoru is the one who drives the action..." Haruhi looked at them quizzically, and Kaoru snorted a quick retort back at her.

"We work that way anyway, so what's the difference!?"

Mitsukuni took it the wrong way. "Really?! Ew!"

Haruhi was oblivious. "What does offense mean?" Mori patted her head as Mitsukuni tugged on his shirt. "Don't worry about it."

Mori was glad when Tamaki interrupted them all.

"Haruhi, whatcha think of my acting!?" Tamaki was like a puppy who had been taken off the leash for the first time. Mori listened as he herded Mitsukuni toward the twins.

"It was...uh...fascinating in a way. Never saw anyone get so intoxicated with himself." Mori forced back a smile.

"I've found a new personality facet! And I think I might go with it for a while..." Tamaki looked very satisfied with himself.

If Mori had been looking at the two of them, the motivation behind her next words would've been much easier to figure out.

"Y'think? Seems to me you're okay just the way you are." Mori turned himself then so that he had everyone in his field of vision, including Mitsukuni who was wearing his towel as a hood.

Tamaki had been rendered speechless. Had she said that because she truly thought so, or because Tamaki having a reason to be even more dramatic would make things worse? He guessed the latter. The twins were making little red riding hood jokes as Tamaki mulled over his answer.

"I suppose you could be right." Renge called for Haruhi, and Mori sighed as Tamaki, blushing, clearly began to have an existential crisis. Haruhi rounded the corner of the building and was out of sight.

* * *

"Renge, what did you need me for?" Haruhi's eyebrow quirked at the sight of two strangers on Renge's left.

"I would like these men to appear in our production." It took her a moment, but their state of dress and casual address of Haruhi as "scholarship wimp" affirmed that they were from D-class. Had they just been passing by when Renge stopped them?

Renge continued unabashedly. "We need villains in this piece, and these two are PERFECT! They'll harass our heroes, who will unite to stop them! That will affirm their friendship!" Haruhi had just unwillingly boarded a train that was about to chug its way into another train.

"Renge, I don't think-"

"In the spectacular ending, Kyoya's moving words will persuade even the worst elements of the school to be nice and fly right!"

_It's like she's trying to shove both of her feet into her mouth at once. Incredible._

The D-class students finally piped up.

"Hey, we're not villains!"

"Yeah! We're nice guys!"

Haruhi swiftly came to their defense.

"Renge, it may be convenient to measure people by relative status, but it really doesn't tell you much about them..."

Renge sat for a moment, staring at Haruhi confusedly. Renge's wheel may have been spinning, but her hamster was dead.

"I'm sure there was a point to all that. But never you mind. You-" She grabbed the hand of the first D-class boy and yanked it forcefully towards the set, "just come over here and we'll get started-"

In what Haruhi had foreseen earlier and had tried to prevent, the train chugged ahead at full speed right into a wreck with another train.

"Cut it out! Don't think you can push us around just 'cause you're in the A-Class!" the boy tried to jerk his hand away from Renge in one motion and push her off in the other, which she should have been (but was not) expecting. Renge reeled, and Haruhi had just enough time to jump between her and the hastily assembled scaffolding before they both crashed unceremoniously into it. A few pipes were knocked loose and clattered around them, and Haruhi instinctively pushed Renge away from the scaffolding before she was hit. As a pipe smacked painfully into her shoulder, Haruhi thanked the film crew for using lightweight aluminum.

Renge had already righted herself and was standing.

"Haruhi, are you okay!?"

It was at that point that Mori and Mitsukuni rounded the corner, the rest of the host club at their heels. Mori was immediately at her side, helping her up and placing himself between her and the D-class students. She sniffled, and noticed that her contact had come out and caused several tears to crawl their way down her cheek. _Great. Now I'll be effectively blind on the way home._

"Haruhi, we heard a noise-" Tamaki took in the scene before him, and immediately drew the wrong conclusion. The twins did the same, but managed to act faster; the student who had pushed Renge would have a hard time chewing if Hikaru's nasty right hook had anything to say about it.

"Hikaru, Kaoru, it's not their fault. Leave them alone!" Haruhi barked, turning her attention to Renge. The twins and Tamaki obeyed angrily as the D-class students quickly fled, and Haruhi tried to take the irritation out of her voice. "Renge-"

Before she had the chance to address anything further, Renge interrupted her. Mori took the opportunity to kneel and see if Haruhi was okay. He looked at her pointedly, and she shrugged him off.

"It's not a big deal. We're fine," Haruhi said under her breath. "And if it's anyone's fault...well, I'm sure you can guess who started it." Mori nodded, a defeated sigh escaping his lips. Haruhi realized that even **his** patience for Renge was wearing thin.

"Wow! Camera! Did you get all that!? That's it then! That's just what I'm after! All we have left is to shoot Kyoya's moving-"

Kyoya appeared out of nowhere, the rock in his hand smashing the lens of the camera that was focused on them into useless shards. Renge was appalled.

"Kyoya..."

"Sorry to be so abrupt, but I cannot permit recordings of our members behaving in this way. In fact, this whole business has been a very great bother. Time to wrap it up." He stood, and an imperceptible blizzard seemed to emanate from behind his glasses.

"But...why?" Renge seemed genuinely confused. "Kyoya would pat my head and tell me not to worry about it. Kyoya would-"

"Nah. That's not our Kyoya." Tamaki spoke up, brushing the last of his anger out of his voice.

"Not to say it wasn't kind of fun..." Hikaru was clearly trying hard to stop Renge from blubbering.

Haruhi rose then, stepping away from Mori and towards Renge.

"While I'm sure love arises for unfathomable reasons, **really** looking at a person and getting to know the **real** him...that's a real relationship."

_Maybe we can get Renge a new hamster, _Haruhi thought. She wasn't very hopeful.

Renge seemed to be actually thinking on Haruhi's words this time.

"I see, and...I'm sorry I didn't see it sooner."

* * *

After a week of Renge-free club time, The host club seemed to be back to it's original state of controlled calm. Mori was enjoying their return to normalcy, and Mitsukuni was enjoying his return to copious amounts of cake during club hours.

In fact, his cousin had a fork halfway to his mouth when the excited cries of girls in the doorway distracted them all from their designators. Renge was leading them all, gusto in every step.

"WE BOUGHT IT! THE VIDEO!"

_Oh no._

"That solemn rain scene is so awesome!" Tamaki's ears perked up as the group of girls flooded into the room, chattering animatedly.

"I'm just giddy over Hikaru and Kaoru's special relationship!"

"Hunny being a monster is just...precious!"

"Haruhi's sorrow was so moving..." Haruhi looked on in horror, and a part of her seemed to die.

"And Mori...oooh, how S&M! How wild!"

_You've got to be kidding me. _He hid his blush behind a sip of tea.

"Kyoya..." Tamaki didn't look pleased.

Kyoya already knew the question, and his answer was well assembled. "It's a rather simple matter to sneak data out of a digital camera. Of course, we did have to pay for the camera...sales will cover that easily. And all of your scenes were judiciously edited." Kyoya didn't bother to look up from his notes, but a glint of his glasses told them all what they needed to know. "A most profitable venture, all in all."

Haruhi looked like she might pour boiling water on Kyoya's head, and moved away from the group. Mori was hard pressed not to smirk at her. Her situation didn't get any better though, as Renge crossed the room and intercepted her only a few steps from the gathering.

"Haruhi! I finally realized that the kindness needed to protect someone, whatever the cost...and the deep love that knows to scold in order to enlighten..." Renge grabbed both of Haruhi's hands and held them together in front of her, "...are not going to be found unless one looks and sees!" Renge stared hopefully into Haruhi's eyes, and was met with apprehension and slight panic.

Renge ignored both emotions.

"Cmon! Let's go to my place and play some games! So you can get to know me, too!" Renge began to drag Haruhi from the club room, and Haruhi did her best to politely refuse.

"I'm not really into games..."

Tamaki was having none of it, but Renge proved better at diffusing the king than Haruhi was.

"FAKER! BE QUIET!"

Mori sighed. "Kyoya..."

Kyoya was completely unsympathetic.

"Let them sort it out. As long as they keep me out of it."

* * *

**There you have it! I haven't looked at the next episode yet, but I'm sure there'll be more fluff opportunities. Hell, even the twins got some fluff in for this episode. **


End file.
